According to the Door County Sheriff's Department, Dr. Jeffrey Whiteside had an argument with his wife, Kathi Whiteside, before he was seen June 29 leaving on foot from the Ephraim Yacht Harbor Marina. The two were vacationing at their Ephraim condo. It has not been revealed what the two quarreled about. Whiteside's phone was turned off shortly after his wife reportedly last saw him. He was reported missing July 1.

Up until Monday night the Whiteside family had been voluntarily working with the Sheriff's Department. Authorities and volunteer groups have searched the condo, marina, and much of the Ephraim area in search of the missing man.

According to Door County Sheriff's Chief Deputy Pat McCarty on Tuesday, Kathi Whiteside has retained Bradley Priebe of Priebe law office in Appleton.

"All future correspondence between the Sheriff's office and Mrs. Whiteside need to go through her counsel," McCarty said.

The announcement of her retention of counsel came after the Sheriff's Department requested verbal permission to search the Whiteside's family home.

"We asked for consent to search her home, and consent was denied (by the attorney)," McCarty said.

The chief deputy explained that without evidence of a crime, a search warrant cannot be requested.

"Like I explained last week in speaking with our district attorney, we don't have proof that a crime has been committed," he said.

Kathi Whiteside's move to get an attorney does not automatically make her a person of interest, but the department continues to consider all possible scenarios. McCarty said she was within her rights to retain counsel.

"Like I told you previously, we haven't eliminated anything. We are open to all options," he said.